


The Hike

by IvanW



Series: Stand-Alone Stories [2]
Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Adventure, Bottom Jim, Camping, First Time, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Humor, M/M, Romance, Sexual Content, Shore Leave, Stranded, Stuck on a Planet Trope, Top Spock
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-17
Updated: 2018-08-23
Packaged: 2019-06-28 21:09:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15715137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IvanW/pseuds/IvanW
Summary: On the way to see a Science Thingamajig, Spock and Jim get lost and stranded together in a cave.





	1. Chapter 1

“What are you doing?”

The sharp question startled Jim for a moment. He stopped mid-stride and looked down at the rigid figure of Spock, sitting against the rock wall in the cave they are currently sheltered in.

“I’m bored, so I’m pacing.”

“And it is as disconcerting as it was the last three times you have done it.”

“Disconcerting? You mean irritating, Spock.” He returned to pacing.

“Vulcans do not feel irritation.”

“But you do.” Spock closed his mouth instead of continuing to argue and Jim was glad. He really didn’t want it to descend into some childish “No, I don’t” “Yes, you do” sort of thing. That was surely beneath them.

He walked over to the entrance of the cave and looked out the pouring rain.

“How long have we been stuck here?”

“Six hours, thirty-four minutes and twenty-three point four seconds.”

Jim bit back an unfunny retort that Spock should be more precise. He wasn’t really in the mood for it. Honestly, what he was in the mood for was tearing off his clothes, straddling Spock, and going for the ride of his life.

Yeah, that wasn’t going to happen.

But Spock looked insanely hot. Seriously.

He was dressed as casually as Jim for a change. Which he would be given they were on shore leave. He wore tight, dark blue jeans, a sort of olive green T-shirt, and a leather jacket that made Spock appear to be the bad boy he certainly wasn’t.

Funny, Jim was dressed similarly. Jeans, a blue T-shirt instead of green, which yeah he’d chosen to match his eyes, so what, and a brown leather jacket instead of the black one Spock wore.

Neither were real leather, of course. But they both did a great job of looking as good as the real ones of the old days did.

But Jim was pretty sure he didn’t pull it off to the degree Spock was.

The thing was, they’d gotten lost. Yeah super lost.

Jim figured they’d be found eventually because those in charge of this planet knew they were there and eventually Bones or Uhura or Scotty would notice their commanding officers had never returned.

They were off, Spock and Jim, to find the location if some ancient scientific thingamajig that Spock wanted to study. And okay, yeah, Jim was so stupidly smitten he’d agreed to go along with Spock on this exhibition rather than have _real_ fun in the city.

It was supposed to take a couple of days to reach the place. They planned on camping out overnight. Honestly, Jim had been surprised Spock was interested in camping. Jim had done it as a kid a few times, once on his own when he’d run away from Frank and home, but Spock, well, the Vulcan had admitted he’d never done it.

So they set out with backpacks and tents and the like.

Jim had thought Spock would ask Uhura to go with him. Yeah, they had decided to be friends only, after everything, which surprised Jim, it did, but they were still super close and she seemed, er, the _logical_ choice.

But then he asked Jim.

Turns out, as it happened, Jim found out just before they headed off on this, more adventurous outing than he’d planned on, Spock _had_ , in fact, asked Uhura first. She’d said no, turns out she was no longer as stupidly smitten as Jim was, and she’d thought better of the idea.

Jim didn’t know how he felt about being second fiddle, okay, he _did_ know, it sucked, but it didn’t suck enough to make him turn Spock down or change his mind. Which now, Jim knew, he should have.

They’d gotten lost, badly so, and then they’d crossed over this rickety old rope bridge that decided to break just as Jim was bringing up the rear, naturally, and he almost fell into a stream of rocks below and became the former Jim Kirk, except that Spock grabbed him and pulled him to safety at the last possible minute. Which he really wasn’t sore about. Much.

They clearly could not go back the way they’d come, whatever way that was, because all the maps Spock had never listed a rope bridge. And then, just as they were studying Spock’s PADD, trying to figure it out, the PADD had died. Not a slow death or anything, just a catastrophic failing.

Spock had turned to Jim and asked for _his_ PADD.

Except, Jim hadn’t brought his. _Shore Leave_ , you know.

And then the storm of all storms hit.

They’d somehow managed to find this cave without killing themselves in the process. But the storm hadn’t let up at all, and in fact, had gotten worse.

They’d had their communicators, of course. Yes. But no matter how many times they tried contacting _somebody_ all they got was static. 

Spock had spent the first two hours trapped here attempting to fix his PADD. To no avail.

“How much longer will we be here before someone finds us, do you think?”

“I cannot say.”

“Well, could you guess?”

Spock sighed. “I cannot calculate how much longer this storm will last. The roads and paths we took to get here are washed out. The bridge, as you know, is down. I did suggest we not take that bridge, but you insisted—”

“Wait. So, this is _my_ fault?”

“Our communicators are not working,” Spock continued. “And we are not expected back until three days from now.”

Jim stared at him.

“It is entirely possible it will take that long before they will realize we need to be rescued, Captain.”

“Shit.”

Spock arched a brow. “And if you plan on pacing for all that time, you will most definitely wear yourself out.”

Jim huffed. He walked over to where Spock sat against the rock wall and plopped down next to him, leaning against it heavily.

“You might think this is my fault, Mister Spock, but you are the one with faulty maps.”

Spock said nothing.

“And the PADD that broke was yours too,” Jim pointed out, rather petulantly, he could admit.

“You did not bring any PADD,” was Spock’s retort. Then he shook his head. “I will not allow you to draw me into an argument about who is at fault for our circumstances.”

“It’s not an argument. It’s a discussion.”

“Nevertheless, it is futile.”

Jim fell silent. The cave seemed to have gotten quite a few degrees colder in the last few minutes.

“That is because night has fallen.”

Jim gave Spock the side-eye. “Did I say that out loud or are you sucking the thoughts from my brain?”

“I have told you numerous times that is not the way my telepathy works. You spoke your thoughts out loud.”

“Well, fuck anyway. I think the ceiling is too low to set up the tents and I’m not going out there in tents with that rain.”

“We will have to spread out our sleeping bags on the floor of the cave.”

“But it’s literally hard as a rock.”

“Affirmative.”

Jim counted to five so that he could stop himself from a childish mocking “ _affirmative_ ”.   

God, he really did love this Vulcan. And not at all platonically, obviously, but man, Spock tried his patience sometimes.

“Fine. Rocks it is.” He flung himself up from the cave floor dramatically and went to his backpack. He crouched down to pull out contents, aware that Spock was doing the same thing nearby. “So, I have a query.”

“Yes. Captain?”

“Why, er, why was I not your first choice?”

“Clarify.”

“For this mission. Yeah, I mean, it’s not a _mission_ , it’s shore leave. But you know what I mean. I thought…” Okay, now he was starting to sound pathetic, and he hadn’t meant to do that, _at all_ , but how did he get out of it at this point? “Why did you invite Uhura first?”

Spock paused over his own backpack, in the process of detaching his sleeping bag.

“Are you guys getting back together?” Jim asked, though he dreaded the answer with every fiber of his being. But it was a legitimate question. They were on again, off again.

“No,” Spock replied.

And for the longest time he didn’t say anything else, so Jim wasn’t sure if maybe he should drop it or what?

He carried his sleeping back over to near where they’d sort of set up camp. There was no dry wood so they didn’t have a fire or anything. But they did have a lamp. He spread out his bed.

He leaned back on his haunches. “Do you want to?”

Spock spread his out next to Jim’s, very close, maybe even closer than it needed to be, honestly, but he’d noticed the Vulcan shivering just a little and hell, Jim was freakishly cold too, so he could hardly blame Spock. He didn’t want him far anyway.

“I love Nyota,” Spock said softly.

Jim winced, but tried not to.

“But I am not _in love_ with her, as I think, humans would say. She is very special to me and always will be. But any romantic love feelings we had for each other have given away to a comfortable, family love.”

“Oh,” Jim said, brilliantly.

“Similar, I am guessing, to the way it is between you and Doctor McCoy.”

“Yeah,” Jim replied, and then said, jokingly, “Except for the fact Bones and I never fucked. He wanted to, but—”

“What?” Spock’s expression had gone almost glacially blank, if that made any sense. It did to Jim, but he figured probably no one else.

“I’m kidding, Spock. Bones and I never got to that point. It’s been friends since day one. Not like you and me.”

“You and me?”

“We wanted to kill each other from day one. Not sure that’s entirely changed either,” Jim murmured. He knelt down on the sleeping bag.

“I do not desire to kill you,” Spock said slowly. “Any more.”

Jim laughed. “That’s good to know, Spock.” He shrugged off his jacket and set it to the side and then shimmied out of his jeans, leaving those on top of his jacket. Then he removed his shirt and did the same with it. He turned around just in time to see Spock’s gaze slide away from him, kind of sneakily.

Nah, Spock couldn’t have been watching Jim get undressed. He shook his head and peeled back the flap of his sleeping bag.

“Brr, it’s cold.”

“Yes,” Spock agreed, immediately. “In fact, I was about to suggest that we interlock our sleeping bags together to combine heat and conserve energy.”

“Mm. Probably a good idea.”

Though honestly, Spock noticing him sporting a woody probably wouldn’t be, and if he was lying all cozy next to his first officer, Jim was pretty sure that was exactly what was going to happen.

“If you will get into the sleeping bag, Captain, I will attach mine to yours.”

Yeah, yeah, Spock meant the sleeping bags, Jim totally got that. He did. But it still sounded wonderfully perverted.

Anyway, he was too cold to argue, so he scooted under the bag, somewhat annoyed he’d left his socks on. It occurred to him he wasn’t quite sure what energy they were conserving. They had plenty of food. In fact, only a cup of hours ago they’d had a big pot of beans with toast. Bread made into toast with a phaser was weird, there was that. An hour ago, Jim had eaten a chocolate bar. He’d offered to share it with Spock, but Spock had shaken his head, quite emphatically.

Spock had finished combining their bags and now appeared to be undressing himself.

Jim closed his eyes. If he had any hope of surviving this ordeal without complete and utter embarrassment, he needed to avoid watching a mostly naked Spock. He felt the sleeping back lift and then Spock lay beside him in the very large, way too cozy sleeping bag.

“Warmer?” And if his voice came out sounding thick, well who could blame him. Spock was so close he could feel his body heat, which was yeah the point, but Spock was so close he could _feel_ his _body_ , and smell Spock, who absolutely smelled like heaven, Jim’s version of it, obviously.

“Yes, Captain. Much warmer.”

Jim’s head was flat against the rock floor and damn why wasn’t he smart enough to have thought to bring a pillow anyway? Some genius you are, Kirk, he thought to himself.

“So, uh, you didn’t answer.”

“What, Captain?”

“Why you invited Uhura first instead of me.”

“Because I was not certain that this was the type of shore leave you anticipated, Jim.”

 _Ooohh, Jim._ It was unfair the way his insides melted every time Spock called him Jim. If he was a dog, he’d be panting.

“What kind did I anticipate then?”

“Generally, the kind you prefer are carousing with the doctor.”

Too true. And that was exactly Jim’s plan before Spock invited him.

“If I had turned you down like Uhura, would you have invited someone else or gone by yourself?”

“By myself.”

“Well, with your faulty maps, I’m glad I went with you then.”

“Yes, I am also glad.” A long pause. “Though I would not have chosen to cross that rope bridge.”

“This is _not_ my fault.”

“As you say, Captain.”

Jim opened his mouth to argue again but then thought better of it. Okay, maybe it was a little bit his fault. And maybe he didn’t care. Because he was alone with Spock. And yeah, no one knew where they were. But they would. Eventually.

Besides, Spock had just scooted closer.        


	2. Chapter 2

“Are you really cold, swe—”

Oh, crap. Jim’s brain had gone to mush clearly. He had about to call…just ugh. Hopefully Spock would not notice it.

“What did you say, Captain?”

No chance of that, obviously.

“Just…are you cold?”

“I thought I heard another word that—”

“No. Are you cold, Spock?” he asked, pointedly this time.

“Yes.”

“Move closer then.”

“Captain, I do not think—”

“It’s wise to let you freeze to death.”

Spock hesitated. “I do not think the temperature has dropped enough for that.”

“Oh. Right.”

_Geez, Jim. He’s trying not to get too close to you._

Sometimes he really had to be hit over the head, sadly.

“Go to sleep, Commander,” Jim said, deliberately hardening his voice. “Maybe when we make up this whole nightmare will be over.”

Silence.

And then—

“Do you really find this to be a nightmare?”

He didn’t answer at first because there was an odd tone in Spock’s voice that gave him more than a little pause. Almost as if he gave the wrong answer Spock would be crushed. Which was ridiculous of course. Nothing crushed Spock. And certainly nothing that involved Jim.

“No,” Jim said, cautiously. “I mean, well, we were going to be camping anyway. So this storm would have hit us while were out there in tents. Probably soaked right through them. And the rock is probably only a little more uncomfortable than the regular ground would have been. And you did save me from falling when that bridge broke.” He paused. “If I’d fallen, that would have been a nightmare.”

“I will always save you.”

And just like that Jim’s heart started racing. Because if that didn’t sound like ‘I will always save you because I love you’ then he was hearing things he wanted to hear. Which, yeah, okay, maybe he was.

But all he could manage was to whisper, “Spock.”

“Captain, I am aware that you do not—”

“C’mere.” Jim was taking a huge chance, he knew.

“Captain—”

“Spock.” He sucked in a breath, let it out. He felt almost panicky. “Come closer.”

Spock did not respond nor did he move.

“I don’t want to make it an order.”

And then Spock was moving underneath the sleeping bag and toward Jim. Jim might have imagined that too but he swore Spock was being deliberately slow about it to make Jim suffer and second guess himself twenty times.

When he was finally close enough, Jim went to grab hold of the material of Spock’s shirt only to realize Spock had removed his shirt too, and so his hands, his closed fists actually, landed on Spock’s shoulders. And those shoulders were somehow warm and inviting, if shoulders could be, Spock’s definitely were.

“I do,” Jim said bluntly.

“I do not understand.”

Apparently not bluntly enough, Jim realized.

“Spock, I will always save _you_.”

And God, he hoped that was plain enough for Spock to get it, because seriously if he had to speak any plainer than that, if he had to say the words, than the panicky feeling was bound to come back.

There was an unnatural stillness in the air. Almost preternatural. Yet the storm raged on outside their kind of cozy cave.

Enough time passed that Jim had decided he had miscalculated after all. He began to slide his fists down Spock’s shoulders, ready to bolt right out into the storm if need be.

But then with a sort of jerky, stilted movement, Spock’s face was suddenly next to his, so close, he could feel Spock’s breath on his face, and he detected the hitch in that breath. Spock was very much affected, Jim realized. And that filled him with unexpected elation.

“Sp—” The words were stolen from his lips by the crush of Spock’s mouth over his.

And if Jim had ever imagined that Spock would kiss all stiff and proper he had been very much, gratefully, mistaken. Spock’s lips, his kisses, were possibly the most feeling, the most generous that Jim had ever known.

So damn addictive too, and his own lips softened under the onslaught of Spock’s warm, soft mouth, allowing the Vulcan’s tongue to slip in. Jim had briefly wondered if Spock’s tongue would be a little rough like a cat’s, and he wasn’t sure why he wondered that really, but it didn’t matter, because Spock’s tongue was just like his own, only so much more, so much—

He un-fisted his hands and slid them up Spock’s biceps, oh Lord, those biceps, and back up to Spock’s shoulders. He gave a very unmanly whimper and didn’t care at all. Spock shifted them so that Jim found himself flat on his back, a rock piercing into his back, and somehow he couldn’t have cared less, because Spock was over him, kissing him senseless, his elegant Vulcan hands, with those long fingers, spreading over Jim’s flushed skin like he wanted to map every inch of Jim’s flesh. And Jim would let him too.

The best part is they were both mostly nude so it wouldn’t really take that much to shed their clothes. If that’s what they were about to do. Jim hoped.

Judging by the way Spock’s very prominent erection pressed against his leg, through his underwear, of course, it was a strong possibility. And honestly that made his brain fog over. Because never could he have actually expected that Spock’s dick would get hard for _him_ , of all people. Because Spock was, well, Spock, almost surreal, really. Someone to covet that you never really could get.

There was a sudden hesitancy in Spock’s kiss and then to Jim’s dismay, Spock’s lips left his altogether. Spock now stared down at him, but of course Spock had put the lamp out and the cave was dark so Jim had no idea what Spock could or would see looking down at him. Literally, of course, not figuratively. Unless there was some truth to Vulcans being somehow related to cats and they could see better in the dark than Jim could.

 _Nah_.

He opened his mouth to say something, he had no idea what, when Spock’s fingers swept up to his face, left side, and cradled his jaw there. For some reason that made his stomach flutter and his heart ache in unexpected ways.

“Jim.” Spock’s voice was quite serious.

They were supposed to be getting down and dirty not getting serious. And he wondered what he’d done to ruin the mood.

“You are…” But Spock’s voice trailed off. Stopped altogether and the strange little hitch in his breath was back.

Jim very much hoped his next word wasn’t going to be stupid or foolish or any number of words that would definitely deflate everything going on between them.

So he put his own fingertips to Spock’s lips, lest he get the idea to continue whatever he was going to say.

“I want you.” He pushed up from the ground, as best he could—considering damn Vulcans were heavy—against Spock, hoping he’d get the idea from his own really hard dick that words, whatever they were to be, could come later.

That did the trick, clearly, because Spock was kissing him again, stealing his breath, his soul maybe, his tongue once more slipping into Jim’s mouth to dally with Jim’s own appendage.

This time Jim wasted no time in putting his hand down Spock’s undershorts to feel his ass cheek. Like the rest of Spock it seemed to be incredibly warm. It also caused Spock to suck in a breath.

“Off,” Jim gasped against Spock’s mouth.

“Yes, remove these.” Spock tugged at Jim’s.

“I said it first.” Jim huffed a laugh that might have come out more a moan when Spock cupped his erection through his briefs. “Fine. You do yours and I’ll do mine.”

Just as he flung his across the cave, a terrible thought hit him.

“Uh, Spock.”

“Captain?”

He rolled his eyes. “Seriously? You’re laying naked on top of me and I can feel your hard cock. Never mind. We, uh, the thing is, there’s no lube. For you know. _That_.”

Spock nodded. “Fortunately, Vulcan males secrete lubricant to ease any difficulties of sexual congress.”

“Wh-What?”

“Surely you have heard of Vulcan—”

“No. _Never_.”

Spock’s hand closed around Jim’s cock and he hissed. “Judging by your reaction, I anticipate it is a pleasant surprise.”

“Smug Vulcan,” he murmured. “Why not put it to use then and fuck me?”

“What is your preferred position?” Spock asked in a low rumbly voice.

“Um. Er. Well, you know. You doing me.”

“Yes, that much I surmised and concur with. My meaning is more literal. Would you rather as you are or on your stomach or—”

“Oh.” Jim moistened his lips. Normally, he wouldn’t care, really. Anyway Spock wanted to fuck him was okay with him. But he was already feeling a little…overexposed. Even in the dark of the cave. Vulnerable. Unsure. And yeah, okay, insecure.

There was something a little too intimate about face to face right now. Crotch to crotch. Whatever.

“Stomach,” he croaked out, wincing at the weird sound of his voice.

Jim flipped over then to lie on his stomach, face buried a bit in the material of the sleeping back, once more wishing he’d thought of a damn pillow, or better yet, wishing they were on the Enterprise in his quarters in his comfortable bed.

Any rational thought fled when he felt Spock’s fingers on his ass, spreading his cheeks. This was really going to happen.

Breathe, Jim, he told himself.

Spock’s finger probed into him, and he was fairly relieved to feel that it was slicked up, presumably with that Vulcan magic fluid, and he felt almost no sting at all. He moved his legs farther apart to give Spock better access. That long finger pushed deeper and Jim couldn’t help but let out a needy moan.

Spock leaned over him, hot breath next to his ear. He said nothing, just blew, which drove a shudder down Jim, starting from that ear and heading all the way down his body. How Spock knew that drove him crazy, Jim didn’t know. But damn.

A second finger joined the first and Jim keened and pushed back, into the intrusion. Spock blew against his ear again, and Jim closed his eyes, flinging his head back. If Spock kept this up Jim would be coming before he even got his cock inside Jim.

“Spock, I…please.”

He hoped Spock would get what he wanted because he found himself unexpectedly tongue-tied. When those probing digits withdrew and Spock poised the head of his cock at Jim’s hole, he wanted to scream, “hallelujah.”

Jim crept his hand underneath his stomach and slid it down to his shaft, curling his fingers around it just as Spock shoved in. He might have given an undignified howl but fortunately Spock did not comment on it.

Then again Spock was entirely busy shoving his considerable cock up Jim’s tight passage. Not that Jim was complaining.

“God yes.”

Spock hesitated only a moment and then he began to move within Jim, thrusting deep and quite thoroughly. He certainly seemed to know what he was doing, and whatever Spock’s past experiences were, Jim just didn’t care. Because now, Spock was with him. And he knew Spock did not take this lightly. Never could. And for that matter, neither could Jim.

Spock fastened his mouth onto the side of Jim’s neck, sinking his teeth in just a bit and it hurt, it did, but it also set a thrill through him and straight to his cock. It was like Spock was, Jim didn’t know, marking him or something. And hot damn if he was.

Besides the rain pounding outside, the only other sounds were his panting breaths and the slap of Spock’s balls against him as he fucked Jim again and again. He wished a little for some padding for his knees as Spock pushed him against the rocky floor of the cave, but he pushed that aside as his own cock jumped and throbbed in his grip. He was so damn close. And as Spock’s cock hit his prostate, Jim mewled, making him wonder who the cat was here.

“ _Jim_.” A moan in his ear, a hot blowing breath of his name said like a litany, and Jim lost it, shooting cum all over his hand and the sleeping bag. Spock joined him, hot liquid flowing into his ass from Spock’s pulsing cock.

For a while they stayed locked together, Spock still inside him. He’d eased Jim’s position a little so that he was spooned on his side against Spock, their hands linked. Spock used his free hand to slide over Jim’s torso, stroking soothingly. It was so tender and intimate and romantic, it was almost unbearable for Jim.

“How long?”

“Jim?”

He let out a shuddery breath. “How long have you wanted this between us?”

Spock shook his head. “The depth of my feelings became clear when I watched you expire in the warp core.”

His heart clenched. “Yet you stayed with Uhura for long after that.”

“I had no expectation that you would ever return my feelings. My love for Nyota was comfortable, a known element. There did not seem a reason to upend it at that point.”

“Or any point, after,” Jim said softly.

“No,” Spock admitted. “I put aside my feelings for the sake of all. Including myself. And you? How long have you felt this way?”

Jim knew Spock would ask. It was only fair that he did, after all. Jim had pulled the information out of him, after all. But it made him seem rather pathetic, really, and he was uncomfortable making himself so vulnerable.

“Jim. You do not have to.”

He shrugged. “No. I mean, obviously, I asked you.” Jim sighed. “I saw you differently after my time on Delta Vega with Ambassador Spock. He-he shared a lot with me. Probably more than he intended and certainly more than he should have. Anyway, because of that, I started, I don’t know, paying more attention I guess. At first I thought, nah, this is residual from them, their relationship, but then I came to recognize that it was more than that. By the time I got you out of that volcano, I was head over heels in love with you.”

Spock finally pulled out of Jim then, but it was only to draw him closer, to turn him around so that they were chest to chest. Neither of them said anything else, not then. And they fell asleep that way.

****

The rain was gone in the morning, so they left the cave, their love nest, Jim thought with no little amusement, setting off on the road to continue their journey.

Jim got the distinct impression Spock was not overly fond of hiking and camping, though he did not complain outright.   

They stopped late afternoon for a rest and some refreshment.

“This might actually be an okay place to camp for the night,” Jim mused. “What do you think, Spock? Should we keep going?”

“I am fine to cease our travels. It will not take long in the morning to reach our destination.”

Jim nodded. “I’m going to look around for a bit.”

“Be careful not to find another rope bridge,” Spock said, arching a brow.

“Har har.”  

He stepped out of the clearing into the copse of trees to see the area. It was nice. Beautiful, really. And peaceful. It brought him a lot of nostalgia, actually. For his camping days. His early ones, especially. Once he and Sam had gone with their grandfather, their mother’s dad, before everything had gone to shit and hell in their lives. The memories of that time made him ache, yes, but some of it in a good way.

His grandfather had died the following winter, Mom had married Frank, and then, well, Sam had left eventually. They were all gone now. Well, except Mom. And him.

With a shake of his head, Jim turned to go back. And that’s when he saw Spock holding Jim’s PADD. Which he had retrieved out of Jim’s things.

Jim smiled. “Hey.”

“Captain, what is this?”

“Looks like my PADD. Guess I brought it after all.”

Spock opened and closed his mouth.

“Are you mad?”

The Vulcan shook his head and set the PADD back in Jim’s bag. “I…I too have a confession to make.”

Jim frowned. “Yeah?”

Spock walked over to his own things and then reached inside. He straightened and held up a communicator.

“Well, but—”

Spock handed it to him. Jim looked and saw that it had his initials on it. JTK. Yeah, so he put his initials on his stuff. So what?

“I don’t understand.” Jim reached into the pocket of his jeans and pulled out his communicator. It felt much lighter than the one Spock had just handed to him but it had his initials.

Spock’s cheeks were green. “The one you have with you is a false duplicate. I switched it for your real one.”

“You devil.”

“I would never allow us to truly be stranded without a way to contact the ship in an emergency,” Spock assured him. “But this gave the illusion that we would have to take shelter. I was aware a storm was expected.”

“I see.” Jim tossed the fake one and pocketed the real one. “While we are confessing, I programmed your PADD to fail.”

“ _Jim_.”

He laughed. “Yeah well.”

Spock eyed him. “You are unexpectedly deceitful.”

“Right back at you.” Jim grinned. He stepped close to Spock. “And guess what else?”

“I am afraid to guess.”

“There is no ancient scientific artifact here.”

Spock stared at him.

“I made up that thingamajig so you’d go on shore leave. And I wanted you to ask me to go with you.”

“That is…elaborate.”

“Yeah.” Jim laughed again. At himself. “It would have been much easier for my back and my knees and well, both of us, if we’d just bothered to admit how we felt on the Enterprise.”

“Indeed.”

“Sometimes for such really brilliant officers that we are, we can be a couple of idiots.”

Spock’s lips twitched. “You have been around the doctor too much. You are beginning to speak like him.”

Jim slung his arms around Spock’s neck. “Well, we have another day before we have to be back.”

“Perhaps we should have ourselves beamed to the main city where we can—”

“Nope.”

“ _Nope_?” Spock’s eyebrow almost disappeared under his bangs.

“We still have time to enjoy camping and hiking.”

“Captain—”

“Don’t give me that ‘captain’ crap in that snooty voice of yours, babe. We’re doing this.”

Spock definitely gave him the side-eye. “ _Babe_?”

“Trust me, it’s better than sweetie pie.”

Spock straightened. “I trust you.”

“Excellent. Set up camp. We’re going to sleep together under the stars, then go for a good long hike in the morning.”

“I do not really care for camping and hiking,” Spock said, almost petulantly.

“I know. Which means it’s not likely I’ll ever get you to do it again.”

“That is almost a certainty.”

Jim kissed his cheek. “When I was a kid my grandpa took me and Sam camping and hiking. It looked a bit like this. It was…nice. He was.”

“You do not often speak of your family.”

“Yeah. But, I don’t know, maybe I could tell you a little about it. Them.” He lowered his gaze. “And Frank, too.” He raised his gaze. “Tarsus.”

Spock pulled him close. “And I will tell you about my mother. She would have approved of you.”

Jim drew back to look into Spock’s eyes. “Yeah?”

“Very much so.” His brown eyes were soft and warm and they did funny things to the fluttering in his stomach and his heart. “Ashayam.”

“What is that?”

Spock kissed his nose. “Sweetie pie.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. Kudos and comments are always welcome and appreciated.  
> Hope you enjoyed.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [(Fanart) The Hike](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18051902) by [Mylochka](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mylochka/pseuds/Mylochka)




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